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Local "Biggest Loser" Patrick House was on mile 23, and nearly finished with the marathon, when the explosions rang out.

"We kept running. We made it to about mile 24 1/2 before they finally, the National Guard stepped in and said they were stopping the race," House said.

Fifty-nine Mississippi residents were registered to compete in Monday's Boston Marathon, said Mississippi Department of Public Safety spokesman Warren Strain. None of the Mississippi runners had reported injuries, Strain said.

Madison runner Martha Davis said she crossed the finish line about four minutes ahead of the explosion.

"There was a loud boom and a huge plume of white smoke followed by an explosion," Davis told 16 WAPT's Erin Kelly over the phone. "It was, first of all, a loud boom. It sounded like a cannon. It sounded like a cannon that goes off at the beginning of a festive event. And I thought, 'That seems odd to have a cannon,' and then it was followed shortly by a second loud sound."

Davis said there was the constant sound of sirens following the explosions.

"I'm real anxious," she said. "I have a friend that I still haven't heard from out there. There's pretty much a constant barrage of phone calls from my friends."

Donna Bruce, of Madison, crossed the finish line 20 minutes before the blasts.

"I had already gotten across the finish line, met my husband, and was starting to walk back toward the hotel, and the emergency vehicles just started swarming in," Bruce said.

Many people 16 WAPT News spoke to in Boston were waiting anxiously for word from other runners as cell phone service came to a standstill.

"No one's phones are working. I can't believe you got through to this phone because we're not able to call out," said runner Jim George of Brandon.

House was able to contact his family Monday afternoon to let them know he was alright.

"You assume that you're safe at all times and that you're almost invincible. And when you see things like this, you realize how fragile life really is," House said.